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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29790891">Hanakotoba</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadamRed/pseuds/MadamRed'>MadamRed</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Boys Kissing, Canon Compliant, Established Relationship, Flowers, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Kissing, Language of Flowers, Light-Hearted, Love, Love Poems, M/M, Near Future, One Shot, Post-Canon</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 03:27:20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,745</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29790891</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadamRed/pseuds/MadamRed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It’s March and the entire Russian team is taking full advantage of the Katsuki’s onsen to relax before Worlds in Saitama, Japan. The days stretch on for Yuri, though, and a feeling of lethargy overtakes him whenever he’s not busy training.</p><p>Yet boredom is thankfully brought to an end when he receives a cryptic message from his boyfriend, Otabek, on the 14th. Just a simple note and the picture of a beautiful flower take him − and a reluctant Yuuri − on a scavenger hunt around Hasetsu.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Otabek Altin/Yuri Plisetsky</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>38</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Hanakotoba</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I don’t have anything “new” to offer to the Otayuri fandom as of right now but I wanted to post something for Yuri’s birthday at least.</p><p>This story was written for <i>Otayuri: Seasons Zine</i> in 2017 and I have since been given permission to post but it never felt like the right time. I had the pleasure of collabing with eclair back in the day, who drew the cutest chibi ever to accompany the poems featured in this fic.</p><p>Happy Birthday, Yuri! ❤️</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Yuri was trying exceedingly hard not to yawn for the third time in a row as he flipped through the magazine he had been ‘reading’ for the past five minutes. Katsuki’s mum had given it to him when she saw him getting antsy after lunch since he had nothing to do for the rest of the day.</p><p>His eyes were starting to get watery, and he truly didn’t want to offend her if she came by and asked him — in her broken, yet understandable, English — what he thought of the clothes and flower arrangements showcased every few pages.</p><p>Yuri was bored out of his mind and it wasn’t even three in the afternoon. He <em> hated </em> getting up early for practice and then getting the rest of the day off. Back in Russia, he would just walk into Lilia’s studio and sweat off his frustrations and boredom away. But here in Hasetsu… his options were a lot more limited.</p><p>He didn’t really want to venture out to find something to do, either. Being unfamiliar with the language was a big disadvantage since not many people spoke English fluently enough to hold a conversation and, frankly? Yuri had nothing to share with the people in this town; he didn’t even know them.</p><p>And those he <em> did </em> know were nowhere to be found.</p><p>Yakov and Lilia had gone somewhere to have lunch; he hadn’t been paying much attention after they said they wouldn’t have training in the afternoon. The <em> baba </em> was taking a nap; Georgi was soaking up in the <em> onsen </em> with the old man, and Katsudon had left with Mari earlier to go buy things their mother needed for dinner tonight and couldn’t get delivered for some odd reason.</p><p>So, he was stuck at Yuutopia. <em> Alone. </em> And with no new messages from Otabek. They had been dating for six months now, after a whole year of dancing around each other. But, ever since Yuri had landed in Japan, they had barely been able to talk due to the time difference, having to rely on texts rather than phone calls. Whoever had come up with the concept of timezones <em> sucked</em>.</p><p>He sighed as he laid back on the <em> tatami, </em> giving up on his poor attempt at ‘reading’ the magazine. It was pointless anyway. He couldn’t understand any of the symbols and he couldn’t spend more than thirty seconds looking at something without checking if he had any new messages.</p><p>He must have dozed off at some point because the next thing he remembered was being woken up by Makkachin’s loud barks and the Katsuki siblings’ voices as they announced they were back from their errand.</p><p>He sat up, the bun on top of his head skewed from his impromptu nap on the dining room floor, and yawned as Katsuki walked into the room, his arms full of groceries as he made a few trips back and forth between the entrance and the kitchen.</p><p>“Ah, I want a shower!” Katsuki complained as he plopped down on the cushion opposite Yuri. His mum brought them iced tea before joining Mari in the kitchen to start prepping for the dinner crowd who liked to come in early to drink to their hearts’ content.</p><p>“If you hurry up, you’ll probably find Viktor in the hot springs still. Although he may have already turned into a raisin at this point,” Yuri mumbled, sipping at his glass, his head propped up on his free hand.</p><p>“That’s not why I said it!” Katsuki got red in the face and looked sideways, downing his glass quickly and almost choking in the process. He coughed a few times, glancing in the direction of the kitchen to make sure his family hadn’t heard.</p><p>“Whatever, at least you had something to do. I’ve been sitting here for two hours!”</p><p>“You haven’t moved since we finished lunch?”</p><p>“Nope. Everyone else ditched me, and I was left all alone,” Yuri grumbled, a little bit of hurt seeping into his tone.</p><p>“Why don’t you—”</p><p>Whatever Katsuki was about to say was interrupted by a loud voice coming from the entrance. He got up, and then there was rapidly-spoken Japanese before the front door was opened and closed again.</p><p>“Who was that?” Yuri asked when the other sat down across the table from him again.</p><p>“Postman.” He started separating the mail into different piles. Yuri ignored him for the most part and, once he finished his iced tea, just laid back down on the <em> tatami, </em> closing his eyes and  focusing on the sizzling sounds and faint voices coming from the kitchen.</p><p>He was about to cross the threshold into dreamland again when a piece of paper suddenly made contact with his face. “What the hell?!” The letter fell to his lap after sitting up. He glared at Katsuki, who simply smiled at him as he got up to put away the new magazines on a side table and left the dining room to take the important correspondence to his family.</p><p>Yuri looked down at the envelope and, curiosity getting the best of him, he opened it without even checking who the sender was. His eyes widened when he recognized Otabek’s scrawly handwriting and had to bite down on his lower lip to keep the smile from taking over his entire face.</p><p>It was a two-page letter, which Otabek had started by wishing him a happy birthday and apologising — <em> again </em> — about not being able to be there with him. Yuri felt touched and giddy, already thinking of what he was going to write back when a smaller piece of paper fell from between the pages.</p><p>He frowned at it but pushed down his curiosity in favour of continuing to read the letter. When he reached the bottom of the second page, he finally got his answer: Otabek had arranged a little scavenger hunt in honour of Yuri’s birthday — and because he’d had it with Yuri’s complaints about having nothing to do in Hasetsu.</p><p>“How, Beka?” Yuri said aloud and picked up the fallen note just as Katsuki walked in with a big jug of iced tea.</p><p>“You look happier,” Katsuki commented, refilling their glasses and settling the jug next to them on the table as he sat down.</p><p>“Shut it, Katsudon, this is none of your business,” Yuri replied, trying to appear angry, but the threat fell short thanks to the light pink dusting his cheeks and the smile still on his face.</p><p>Katsuki just laughed and grabbed his phone, so Yuri busied himself with reading the final sentences of Otabek’s letter explaining everything:</p><p>
  <em> ‘All you have to do is follow this first clue and, if you guess correctly, each new note you find will take you through the very beginnings of our friendship. This is all symbolic, of course, but I’m sure you’ll be able to find the equivalent of each place I mention in the clues. Think, keep your eyes peeled, and remember this is all about us and how we came to know each other.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Enjoy your quest, Yura. Happy birthday!’ </em>
</p><p>Yuri smiled as excitement started bubbling up inside him. He was definitely awake now. Scrambling for the note still on his lap, he noticed the picture of a flower with thin lilac petals glued to the outside. Thinking it might be explained in the clue, he opened the piece of paper and stared at the words, reading the message a few times until it sinked in:</p><p>
  <b> <em>And so, our journey begins...</em> </b>
</p><p>***</p><p><em> Walk to the place<br/></em> <em> Where we first met. </em></p><p><em> There, with twirls and grace,<br/></em> <em> Our dreams, in stone, we set. </em></p><p>
  <em> Tis also where we parted ways. </em>
</p><p>***</p><p>Yuri frowned, this time in thought. They had been in the hotel lobby when they saw each other in Barcelona for the first time, which is, technically, where their friendship began. Was there a similar building in Hasetsu?</p><p>“Katsudon!” Yuri said suddenly, startling the other man, who almost dropped his phone.</p><p>“Yurio!” Katsuki replied in the same alarmed tone, the hand not holding the phone was on his chest, right above his heart. “Don’t scare me like that!”</p><p>“You gotta help me!” Yuri pointed at Katsuki, even though they were the only ones in the room. The only sounds that of the ceiling fans and the pots and pans in the kitchen. “Is there a fancy hotel here? Like the one we stayed in during the GPF held in Barcelona?”</p><p>“Don’t think so, but we can look it up.” Katsuki typed on his phone while Yuri tapped his fingers on the table impatiently. After a minute of silence and Katsuki’s focused face as he scrolled down, Yuri couldn’t take it anymore.</p><p>“And?!”</p><p>“Sorry, but no, there’s nothing like that. The closest thing on this side of town would be Yuutopia, actually. But anyway, why do you—” Katsuki didn’t even get to finish his sentence before Yuri jumped up and made a beeline for the entrance, his eyes focused. “Yurio, wait!”</p><p>“Yuuri? What’s with all that noise?” Mari’s head appeared from behind the screen door separating the kitchen from the dining room.</p><p>“Don’t worry, Mari-nee-chan, I’ll take care of it,” Katsuki mumbled, standing up quickly to see what was happening.</p><p>When Katsuki walked out of the room and saw all the leaflets scattered around the floor, the many delivery boxes opened and a frantic Yuri going through each individual pair of slippers for their guests, he sighed, already envisioning the kind of day ahead of him.</p><p>“Yurio, please, stop,” Katsuki started saying in his usual tone, but when Yuri paid him no mind, he raised his voice instead. “You’re being ridiculous and making a mess!” Yuri immediately looked up, Katsuki’s angry face mere inches from his own. “You’re gonna put everything back where it was and you’re gonna explain what exactly you were doing.” Katsuki’s low voice made it impossible for Yuri to look away and so he nodded, immediately tidying up the <em> genkan. </em></p><p>In about fifteen minutes, Yuri was done and had told Katsuki the whole story.</p><p>“So, you thought Otabek was talking about that meeting in Barcelona, huh?”</p><p>“Yes, but as you said, there are no hotels like that one near here, so I’m not really sure what he meant.” Yuri looked dejected as he sat down on the wooden floor.</p><p>“Hand me the note for a second.”</p><p>Yuri did as he was told and saw Katsuki reading the clue a few times, his free hand on his chin; he looked deep in thought.</p><p>“Have any other ideas?” Yuri asked just as a smile appeared on the other man’s face when he turned the paper and saw the picture.</p><p>“Do you know what this flower is, Yurio?”</p><p>When Katsuki saw Yuri shaking his head, he disappeared inside the dining room and came back with the magazine Yuri had been looking at before. Katsuki flicked through the pages until he found the one picture he was interested in.</p><p>“Does it look familiar?” Katsuki pointed at the exact same flower, arranged with others in a beautiful vase as a centrepiece, and Yuri nodded, excited. “It’s called a <em> shion </em>, although I’m not sure what the name is in English. Here it says that it means both ‘remembrance’ and ‘I won’t forget you’ in the Japanese language of flowers.”</p><p>“Oh,” was all Yuri said, but the blush on his cheeks gave his true feelings away. He definitely liked the meaning. “But that doesn’t explain why— Hold on!” He grabbed the note again and read it, <em> “Twirls… Grace… Also where we parted ways… </em>Otabek is talking about that summer camp when we were kids!”</p><p>“Ah, that’s right, you did meet a long time ago.”</p><p>“Yes! I almost forgot about that,” Yuri said, looking down at the flower with renewed fondness. Otabek’s attention to detail always brought a smile to his face. “Anyway! Are there any ballet studios around here? Where did you used to go to when you were little, Katsudon?”</p><p>Katsuki could see the determination seeping back into Yuri’s face and got up as well, knowing what was about to happen. “You know I used to go to Minako-sensei’s studio, which isn’t <em> that </em> far from here ...” Katsuki trailed off. Yuri was already putting on his shoes and taking his jacket from the coat rack tucked away in the nook next to the entrance.</p><p>“Walk me there, Katsudon!” Yuri said, leaving Katsuki with no other choice but to follow him with just a quick goodbye to his family, letting them know he’d be back later.</p><hr/><p>“I can’t believe you’re making me take you there, Yurio. Isn’t this supposed to be something you do by yourself?” Katsuki complained ten minutes into their walk.</p><p>“Shut up, Katsudon. You know I get easily lost in this town,” Yuri replied in a slightly angry tone, his eyes on his phone instead of the road. Yuri was happy Otabek had set all of this up for him, but he still hadn’t replied to any of Yuri’s texts. He hadn’t even read them!</p><p>Yuri put his phone in his jean’s pocket with a sigh and looked ahead. The street they were in was lined with trees and, although it wasn’t spring quite yet, the gentle March breeze brought with it the smell of flowers from somewhere in the distance. Despite his mood, Yuri couldn’t deny that the trees definitely made a pretty contrast against the grey and brown city background. He would definitely like to enjoy the <em> Hanami </em> festival he heard so much about with Otabek if they had the chance to come back to Hasetsu after the season was over.</p><p>He was so engrossed in the view and his own thoughts that he completely missed Katsuki stopping in front of a block of flats and had to walk back a few paces, ignoring the man’s teasing smirk at his obvious distraction.</p><p>They climbed up the stairs and knocked on Minako’s door a few times, but it seemed no one was home.</p><p>“Wait,” Katsuki said and turned the charm in the middle of the door around to retrieve a single key hidden at the back of it.</p><p>“Um, care to explain, Katsudon?” Yuri quirked one of his eyebrows.</p><p>“When I was still a teenager, I either ran to the rink to train for hours or came here to dance my anxiety and fears away.” He shrugged as he opened the door and turned on the lights. “Minako-sensei gave up on trying to persuade me to rest pretty early on and told me to make myself at home whenever I needed to.”</p><p>Yuri walked in behind him and spotted a cd player across the room on the floor, already plugged in and waiting to be used. He approached it and knelt. There was a paper on top of it which said: <em>‘Play me.’</em></p><p>Yuri pressed the play button and got up. The music started and it was the same song they would use for practice back in the camp. He smiled softly at the memory and was about to close his eyes when Katsuki’s voice reached him from the other side of the room. “Yurio, look at the mirror.”</p><p>Turning to the side, he saw a piece of paper taped to the surface of the mirror. This time it read: <em>‘Dance to it.’</em></p><p>“This is starting to feel a lot like <em> Alice in Wonderland </em>…” he said before taking off his shoes and standing in the middle of the room to follow the instructions.</p><p>The movements came easy to him, even after all these years. Lilia still liked to use that old routine of hers from time to time to warm up, claiming that it was sometimes necessary to return to one’s roots before delving into new projects. She said it helped clear her mind whenever she needed to think.</p><p>Every time he thought about her words, his mind would take him back to his days in that camp. Unlike his fifteen-year-old self, Yuri now remembered that little Kazakh boy he came to know so well later on in life. He didn’t remember him fully, of course, since he’d been so young and hadn’t paid attention to the people around him unless he needed to, but he did manage to recall new things here and there.</p><p>His favourite memory of that time was that of Otabek’s transfixed expression once when Yuri had to demonstrate something to another kid. Otabek got heavily scolded by both Lilia and Yakov that day because his distraction almost made him fall on top of another student. Yuri still didn’t let him live that one down.</p><p>Without realising, Yuri got through the whole choreography and only opened his eyes when Katsuki started clapping. He turned around to tell him to stop, but his gaze fell on the window next to the other man’s head. There, also taped, was yet another note, but this time it had the picture of two white flowers on it.</p><p>Yuri rushed to it, surprising Katsuki, who moved out of the way with a yelp, thinking Yuri might attack him for clapping — he was still not over those kicks from years ago. Ignoring Katsuki’s panicked expression, Yuri took the note from the window. He recognised the flowers this time — camellias. The poem said:</p><p>***</p><p><em> Whether it was chance or fate,<br/></em> <em> Our paths finally crossed again. </em></p><p><em> We escaped and talked until late,<br/></em> <em> Perched high above Spain. </em></p><p>
  <em> Everyone says it was our first date. </em>
</p><p>***</p><p>The message was easy to work out since Yuri was still mocked about it by Chris, Viktor <em> and </em> Phichit until this very day, especially now that Otabek and he were officially a couple. Yuri was sure it referred to the afternoon they spent at Park Güell in Barcelona.</p><p>“What does it say?” Katsuki asked him, coming near him again after making sure he wasn’t, in fact, going to be kicked.</p><p>“I think this one’s definitely about Barcelona! Remember how he saved me from my Angels the day before the GPF that year and took me to this park, with lots of gardens and an incredible view of the city?”</p><p>“Oh, you mean the day Minako-sensei and Mari-nee-chan made Viktor and I interrupt your date to go out to dinner?” Katsuki smiled, probably getting lost in his own memories. Ugh, disgusting.</p><p>“How many times do I have to say this?! It wasn’t a date, damn it!” Yuri yelled, annoyed. “That really doesn’t matter now. There’s gotta be a similar thing, right? A place high enough that overlooks the entire city?”</p><p>“Yes, and you’ve actually been to it, several times,” Katsuki told him, not really giving him much information.</p><p>At Yuri’s lost expression, Katsuki pushed him out of Minako’s studio and brought him to the middle of the street. He pointed up, not saying anything. Yuri looked up and recognised the one building that could be seen from almost anywhere in the city, his eyes widening. “Wait, you don’t mean the actual ninja castle, right?”</p><p>“No, but close. Come on, it’s a long way up those stairs,” Katsuki said and started marching towards the hill.</p><hr/><p>They were both winded by the time they made it to the castle, the sun at their backs already on its way down, painting the city below in beautiful shades of golds and pinks.</p><p>The moment they set foot at the top, Yuri whipped his head around, searching for the next clue, while Katsuki took a seat on one of the benches. He leaned back on his hands for support and closed his eyes to rest for a minute.</p><p>“Katsudon! What are you doing? Help me find the next note! It could be anywhere!” Yuri, still breathing hard,  stomped his way over to where Katsuki was sitting.</p><p>“Didn’t you say you and Otabek watched the sunset when you were at that park?” The other man asked, opening only one eye to regard Yuri’s obviously frustrated face at being outsmarted.</p><p>With a huff, Yuri sat down on the bench and mimicked him, taking in the view in silence. He had to admit ... it was rather peaceful up there. The scenery was completely different, but he did feel as if he were back in that practically empty park.</p><p>They stayed there for a long while, until all the colours of the sunset melted and merged together to give way to a rapidly-darkening purple and to the hundreds of stars that were already visible, spattered across the night sky.</p><p>Just as the city seemed to be covered by the same veil of night, bringing new life to the town, the third clue fell on Yuri’s lap. Looking up with a frown, he saw Katsuki’s sheepish expression as he got up from the bench, putting some distance between them.</p><p>“Before you say or do anything, no, I didn’t know what the other clues said and, technically, I wasn’t supposed to accompany you throughout this whole thing. All I was told to do was to give this to you here after sunset,” Katsuki explained.</p><p>“I wasn’t going to accuse you of anything, Katsudon, geez,” Yuri mumbled, slightly annoyed, but he guessed Katsuki wasn’t to blame. He had enough self-awareness to know he tended to get ahead of himself sometimes.</p><p>Yuri focused on the note, which had the picture of three roses — red, white and pink —, opening it carefully, the rush from earlier long forgotten after spending so much time up there just thinking. His body betrayed him, though, and his heart started racing when he read the first lines:</p><p>***</p><p><em> Onto the end; you’re almost there!<br/></em> <em> Or should I say the start? </em></p><p><em> For this is where<br/></em> <em> We opened up our hearts. </em></p><p><em> On it, it’s not rare<br/></em> <em> For us to make art,<br/></em> <em> Both together<br/></em> <em> And apart. </em></p><p>***</p><p>Yuri shook his head and bit his lower lip. His boyfriend was the sappiest, dorkiest being in existence, and Yuri could not believe he was able to make him feel this much with just a few simple words.</p><p>He was getting up, heart speeding up at the prospect of finally ending this little quest of his, when Katsuki spoke, his voice quiet so as not to disturb the peaceful atmosphere. “I take it you know where you need to go next?”</p><p>Yuri smiled and nodded at him, thanking him for all his help before heading down the stairs with careful steps and towards the final location.</p><hr/><p>When he made it to the rink, he checked his phone one last time and, seeing that he had no messages from Otabek, he pulled one of the glass doors open and walked in.</p><p><em>“Oi!</em> <em>Yuu</em>—ko?”</p><p>Yuri stopped in his tracks. The place was deserted. Not even the triplets could be seen hiding in the shadows. He frowned. Yakov had told them the place was supposed to be booked in the afternoon for a birthday celebration, hence the reason why they had all had morning practice together and then had been given the rest of the day off despite Worlds being just four days away.</p><p>
  <em> Weird. </em>
</p><p>Glancing around at the barely lit lobby, Yuri spotted his skates and a folded note with his name on it on top of the counter. He looked back at the glass doors, half expecting Katsuki to be there, even though he’d left him at the foot of the castle.</p><p>
  <em> This is it, then. </em>
</p><p>He approached the counter and grabbed the piece of paper. It only said, <em>‘</em><em>Put them on’ </em>in Otabek’s handwriting. Unable — and unwilling — to stop smiling, Yuri sat down on a bench and did as instructed, practically running towards the rink after he finished tying up his skates. He didn’t even bother to question how they’d got there in the first place.</p><p>Yuri walked through the double doors that led to the rink, hoping to see Otabek standing in the middle of the ice. Instead, he got an empty and dark rink, the only light provided by the moonlight streaming in through the windows high above. He squinted, searching the shadows for his boyfriend. </p><p>A second later, a melody could be heard coming from the speakers around the place. It was a tune Yuri recognised, the one he had skated to during his senior debut, <em> Agape </em> . They very song that had started their <em> Davai</em>-thumbs up tradition, which, in turn, had solidified the very beginnings of their friendship in his mind.</p><p>Yuri grinned. He — <em> they </em> — had come a really long way since then.</p><p>Just as he thought of that, the lights were turned on and Otabek finally revealed himself from the other side of the rink, wearing a pair of loose jeans and a white, long-sleeved shirt. He skated over to Yuri, his face breaking off into a soft smile as he gave him a big bouquet of roses, which Yuri took with a big smile of his own.</p><p>They were the same colour as the roses in the last note. <em> Sap. </em></p><p>He inhaled the sweet fragrance coming from the flowers and saw yet another piece of paper hanging from the string tied around the bouquet. He looked up at Otabek as he skated back to the centre without uttering a word and glanced down at the note:<em>‘</em><em>Are you coming or not?’</em></p><p>Not wanting to wait a second longer, Yuri carefully put the bouquet on a little table on the side, along with his guards, and made his way over to Otabek, who was already extending his hand to Yuri.</p><p>“What’s with all the mystery, Altin?” Yuri asked when he was close enough and took the offered hand. He was immediately trapped in Otabek’s arms, and Yuri squeezed the other man’s middle, trying to convince himself that Otabek was real and was there with him, days before they were supposed to see each other at Saitama for Worlds.</p><p>Otabek placed his hands on Yuri’s shoulders and moved his head back slightly, just enough to be able to look him in the eyes. He then knocked their foreheads gently together, closing his eyes and practically breathing Yuri in.</p><p>“I missed you <em> so </em> much,” Yuri whispered, unable to stop himself after months of being apart.</p><p>“Me too, Yura, so damn much,” Otabek said in return, brushing his lips against Yuri’s briefly before giving in and kissing him properly.</p><p>Yuri sneaked a hand around Otabek’s torso and up his chest, finally resting it against his boyfriend’s cheek as their lips moved against each other’s. The gesture, though, was enough to coax Otabek into opening up his mouth. The kiss turned deeper, their tongues meeting slowly, savouring the moment and trying to make it last as much as possible. One of Otabek’s hands also moved up from Yuri’s shoulders to his hair, untying it so that he could bury his hand in it, tilting Yuri’s head to change the angle of the kiss.</p><p>With a groan, Yuri got lost in the warmth of Otabek’s embrace and ignored how cold it actually was. He could never get enough of Otabek, of the feeling of safety he got when he had Otabek’s arms around him, of feeling wanted and cared for.</p><p>The music stopped and they eventually pulled apart, a sigh leaving Yuri’s lips as his eyes remained closed and he rested his head on Otabek’s shoulder. After a while of standing there in the middle of the rink, Yuri felt Otabek holding onto his hand again and then he was being guided around the ice at a leisurely pace.</p><p>“So, are you going to explain what the point of this very elaborate plan was?” Yuri asked after they made a few rounds around the ice.</p><p>“I told you, I’d had enough of your complaining,” Otabek said, the corners of his lips turned up.</p><p>“Shut up, Beka! You would’ve complained, too, if you’d had to spend two <em> full </em> weeks in this town with nothing to do but train. At least in Russia, I could talk to you or <em> dedushka </em> on a daily basis,” Yuri practically mumbled the last part.</p><p>“Hey,” Otabek said and stopped, a hand immediately coming up to tilt Yuri’s head so that he could look him in the eye. “What are you embarrassed about? I’m the one who sat down and wrote poems for his bored boyfriend, remember?”</p><p>“You still haven’t explained why you did it, by the way,” Yuri commented, the hint of a smile on his face.</p><p>“It’s just … remember how you sent me that big box of chocolates while I was in the US for Four Continents?”</p><p>“Yes, it was the day before Valentine’s Day and you were going to be travelling back home on the 14th,” Yuri recalled.</p><p>“Exactly, and I loved that you thought of that,” Otabek told him with a quick kiss before continuing. “I wanted to do something in return, so when I heard you were going to be here for a few weeks before Worlds, I thought I would not only join you earlier, but also try and celebrate. Have you ever heard of White Day?”</p><p>“I think I heard Katsudon talking about that with Viktor.” Yuri made a disgusted face, and Otabek laughed.</p><p>“Well, it’s a Japanese holiday in which those who received chocolates for Valentine’s Day are supposed to give the person who gifted them something white as a thank you,” Otabek looked sideways for a second, suddenly looking sheepish. “It probably sounds incredibly stupid and all, but that’s why I thought about giving you an hour on the ice, just for the two of us ...” He trailed off with a shrug, trying to downplay the gesture.</p><p>Yuri grabbed him by the back of the head and planted a big kiss on his lips. “What about the flowers?” Yuri asked, his lips still ghosting over Otabek’s.</p><p>“The first one means ‘I won’t forget you’. I thought it would be fitting since I was never able to get you out of my head.” Yuri could see the blush rising on Otabek’s face, which made him smile. “The second note had two white camellias, which represent the idea of ‘waiting’, something I had to do until I had the chance to see you again.” Otabek paused to push a strand of hair behind Yuri’s ear; Yuri’s heart was beating a hundred miles a minute.</p><p>“And the roses?” Yuri whispered. There was such little space, it was more than enough for Otabek to hear him.</p><p>“Roses have a multitude of meanings. Red ones, as you probably know, represent the idea of ‘love’; white roses mean ‘devotion’, and pink, ‘trust’ or ‘happiness’. Again, I know it’s silly but—”</p><p>“I love you,” Yuri blurted out. His eyes widened, but Otabek’s hands kept his face in place, not allowing him to hide his embarrassment and panic. “Fuck! Beka, I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have just dumped that on you like that!”</p><p>“I love you, too, Yura. I have for the longest time.” Otabek was gazing at Yuri with such a soft and infatuated expression Yuri had to kiss him again, pouring all of his feelings into it.</p><p>They lost track of time as they continued to exchange kiss after kiss, their fingers interlocked the whole time as they skated round the rink, laughing and blushing and racing each other. The winner got even more kisses from the other.</p><p>After what seemed like an incredibly short time for Yuri, Yuuko knocked on the doors, and Otabek nodded at her.</p><p>“I guess our time is up,” Otabek said with a sigh, already moving towards the nearest exit to grab their things.</p><p>They changed into their shoes and said goodbye to Yuuko, who winked at Yuri when Otabek turned around to leave. He blushed and followed his boyfriend out of the building, wanting to escape quickly before she said anything that could embarrass him.</p><p>When they got out, though, Yuri thought he would take anything Yuuko could throw his way if it meant he could get away from getting into Viktor’s obnoxiously pink car.</p><p>“Yurio! Otabek! Did you enjoy your time alone?” Viktor asked with that annoying heart-shaped smile of his.</p><p>“Beka, why?” Yuri complained, making Viktor pout.</p><p>“He was the only one available who knew his way around the town. Sorry, Yura.” Otabek kissed Yuri’s forehead in apology, and Yuri relented. Sharing a car ride with Viktor back to Yuutopia was bearable given the circumstances.</p><p>After a few minutes of small talk about Otabek’s journey to Hasetsu and Worlds, the conversation came to a standstill, and Viktor, unable to cope with awkward silences, opened his big mouth. “So, Yurio, ready for your birthday party?”</p><p>“What?” Yuri turned his head to stare at Viktor from the passenger seat and managed to catch Otabek’s horrified expression along with Viktor’s guilty one to match. “Let me guess, old man, it was a surprise and you just ruined it, didn’t you?”</p><p>“Surprise?” Viktor asked, a weak attempt at trying to save the situation.</p><p>“Beka?” Again, Yuri ignored Viktor’s pout.</p><p>Otabek sighed, resigned. “When I asked Katsuki for help to set everything up, he told me you had refused to celebrate your birthday since neither me nor your grandpa were going to be there, so … he and the others may have used my plan to keep you out of the house so they could throw you a surprise party before we leave for Worlds in the evening,” Otabek’s voice sounded sincere and apologetic, so Yuri knew he wasn’t lying.</p><p>“Of course they did,” Yuri mumbled, his eyes accusatory as he glanced at Viktor, who gulped as he parked the car in front of Yuutopia before walking away as quickly as he could.</p><p>Yuri and Otabek exited the car as well, and stood before the gates of the resort.</p><p>“Look, Yura,” Otabek said and grabbed his hand. “These are your friends—”</p><p>“Obnoxiously loud friends, you mean,” Yuri added, but Otabek was happy he was at least acknowledging he liked them a bit.</p><p>“It can’t be that bad, right?” Just as Otabek said that, they heard a crash coming from inside, followed by, what they thought was, Minako’s cheering and Katsuki’s frantic voice, probably trying to contain his former mentor’s excitement.</p><p>“I bet you five bucks there are at least three, no, <em> four </em> people already drunk. What do you say, Altin?” Yuri looked over at Otabek as he said it, a smirk appearing on his face.</p><p>“You’re on, Plisetsky.”</p><p>They slid the door open and were met with many voices yelling various greetings simultaneously.</p><p>
  <em> “Surprise!” </em>
</p><p>
  <em> “Woo hoo!” </em>
</p><p>
  <em> “Happy birthday, Yuri!” </em>
</p><p>Yuri smiled as Otabek grabbed his hand to pull him inside with a laugh. Best belated birthday ever.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed the story! ❤️</p><p>Please feel free to scream at me over on social media:</p><p> </p><p>  <a href="https://twitter.com/madamredwrites">Twitter</a><br/><a href="https://madamredwrites.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a><br/><a href="https://www.instagram.com/madamredwrites/">Instagram</a></p></blockquote></div></div>
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